California Dreamin
by CyberChick135
Summary: After a year as an FBI agent working alongside her father, Cassandra "Cassie" Booth is transferred to Los Angeles, working with the Violent Crimes Unit led by Special Agent Don Eppes. Partnered with fellow agent, Colby Granger, Cassie uses her knowledge of the law and streetsmart wit to apprehend criminals. But, what started out as a one-year assignment could become something more.
1. The Beginning in the End part1

**The Beginning in the End. Part One**

 **A/N: This chapter starts in the** _ **Bones**_ **continuity, setting the tone for Cassie's life thus far. It sets the stage for the events in both shows which will be referenced later on. Enjoy! Reviews are appreciated.**

* * *

Another day, another crime. Such was the nature of the work by Special Agent Seeley Booth and his daughter, Agent Cassandra Booth, newest agent to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The two, along with Dr. Temperance Brennan were investigating their newest case; a heavily decomposed body had fallen through the floor of an apartment into the bedroom of another, with a few dozen piles of dusted-over junk.

"Who keeps this much junk?" Booth asked as he slowly stepped around the piles of garbage.

Cassie shrugged as she photographed the scene. "Well, you know what they say: One man's trash is another man's treasure." she answered her father.

"Oh, whoa, wow!" Booth gasped, picking up a hockey puck. "Washington Capitals puck from the '80s. That's classic."

"And yet you referred to the collective piles as 'junk'." Cassie reminded, a small grin crossing her lips.

"Victim is male, in his 40s." Brennan informed.

Cassie snapped a few close-up shots of the victim. "That's it? That's all you got?" Booth asked her, making both females look in his direction. "I mean, usually you have just a list of specifics I don't even understand."

"I'm very distracted." Brennan informed.

"Bet so, with all the junk here." Cassie muttered, snapping more photos. "Anyone would be."

"No, not that." Brennan corrected. "You probably heard about the full set of interspecies hominid remains that were found in the Maluku Islands."

Booth's jaw hung slack, "Oh, I missed that one." he chuckled, having not the slightest clue what Brennan had said. "Where's "Mypoopoo"?"

"Maluku." Cassie corrected her father. "Indonesia."

"Anyway, this could be a crucial link in the evolutionary chain." Brennan added.

"Could be huge, I bet." Booth agreed, halfheartedly. "But what about the 40-year-old dead guy here?

"There are apparent perimortem injuries to the temporal and parietal bones and the squamosal suture." Brennan changed course back to the case, pointing out the injuries to Cassie so she could photograph them.

"He got hit on the head, looks like by something with a sharp edge." Cassie inferred as she examined the wounds closely.

"Let's go see if what hit him is upstairs." Booth suggested, standing in the bedroom doorway. "And I'm keeping the puck. That's vintage."

* * *

Cassie rolled her eyes as she followed her father out of the second floor apartment up to the third floor where the body came from. The landlord let the three inside. "Oh, I tried to get him to clean up his place." the landlord informed. "He wouldn't answer the door. He wouldn't pick up his phone."

"It's probably clean by now." Cassie deducted, her camera bag slung over her shoulder. "Most of his stuff came crashing through the ceiling of the downstairs apartment."

The landlord nodded slightly. "You know what'd be great? If it didn't get out that Murphy died in the apartment." he hinted. "Makes it tougher to rent.

"A big hole in the floor probably makes it less desirable too." Brennan added.

The door opened just enough for Booth to slip in first and flip the light on, illuminating the apartment and showing piles and piles of junk. "Oh, not one of those guys." he sighed, slightly disgusted.

"What guys?" Brennan asked, following the two agents inside.

"A hoarder." Cassie answered bluntly, looking around. Her eyes squinted and her nose crinkled at the sight and stench of the apartment.

"This is an anthropological microcosm of this man's life." Brennan noted, looking around herself.

"I doubt we're gonna find any pertinent evidence in all this crap." Booth scoffed under his breath.

"All this crap is evidence, Booth." Brennan reminded.

A startled yelp came from Cassie as a cockroach scurried across her boot into one of the junk stacks. She jumped back, catching her breath. "Great, little friends for Hodgins to take care of." she shivered and adjusted her jean jacket.

A few minutes later, Dr. Hodgins arrived with his evidence kit. He looked around the apartment and couldn't help but smile. "Well, this is a little slice of heaven." he marveled. "Cockroaches, fleas, rat droppings, bat guano."

"One of those guys." Dr. Camille Saroyan chimed as she stepped over the threshold.

"Oh, yeah." muttered Seeley and Cassie, who were sitting on old boxes near the door.

Cam looked around and shook her head. "I think I'll be happier downstairs with the dead stuff." she gave the others on her team a smile and headed back downstairs to examine the body with Dr. Brennan.

"Who could live in this stench?" Cassie groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose.

Hodgins turned on a nearby fan. "Sense of smell, it's destroyed after a while." he informed. "A survival mechanism."

"Okay, well do you thing and we'll do ours." Cassie suggested, fighting the urge to vomit.

The three looked around the apartment, careful to mind the giant hole where the victim fell through. Hodgins shined his flashlight around and spotted something a value to the case. He tapped Cassie's elbow and showed her his find. "Whoa." the young agent gasped.

Booth saw the find as well and moved to the edge of the hole in the floor, looking right down at Cam and Temperance. "Hey, down below." he whistled, getting their attention. "You might wanna check this out."

"Did you find more remains?" Temperance asked as her and Cam came into the victim's apartment.

"Not exactly, Dr. Brennan." Cassie answered, standing behind a kneeling Hodgins.

"We did, however, find 36 waffle irons." Hodgins interjected. "No syrup, though, so what's the point?"

"Dr. Hodgins." Cam pressed.

"Right." Hodgins cleared his throat and shone the UV Flashlight over a cleared floor space. "Behold." under the rays, was a large pool of dried blood.

Cam's eyes widened. "I'm thinking cause of death might have something to do with blood loss." she deducted.

* * *

The next morning, Cassie strode into the FBI, ready to get to work on the new case. Laying by her keyboard was an envelope addressed to her, with a return address in Los Angeles, California. Her eyebrow quirked as she picked it up.

"Morning Cassie." Lance greeted, pecking her cheek.

"Hey Lance." Cassie replied, hiding the un-opened letter in her purse. She tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear and pecked his lips. "What's up?"

The FBI psychologist smiled, "Our morning coffee run, like we do every day." he reminded. "You comin?"

Cassie put on a smile and nodded, looping her arm through Lance's as they walked out of the building. "You alright sweetie?" Lance asked as they made their way through the lobby.

"Yeah." Cassie lied. "I'm good." she laid her head on his shoulder as they walked.

Waiting for them by the coffee cart near the reflective pool was Seeley, who was going over the case file. "Morning daddy." Cassie greeted, pecking her father's cheek.

Seeley kissed the top of his daughter's head, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Good, Sweets is with you too." he smiled, handing the case file to Lance.

"Yeah, we get coffee here every morning." Cassie reminded, scratching the back of her neck.

"Yeah, I know." Seeley said through gritted teeth. "So, Sweets, what can your shrinky-senses tell us about our victim?"

Lance took the file and looked it over while Cassie ordered the coffee for the trio. "Disposophobics." Lance concluded after a few minutes.

"What's that?" Booth asked, sipping his coffee.

"It's a psychiatric term for those who hoard." Lance simplified. Cassie handed him his coffee as she poured two packs of Splenda in hers. "These photos indicate that the victim was a Level Five hoarder."

"Five out of 10?" Booth questioned.

"No, out of five." Lance corrected.

"Well, things are usually out of 10." Booth reminded.

"Yeah, well not in this case." Cassie cut in, taking a sip of her coffee. "I take it Level Five is the worst?"

"Right." Lance confirmed. "Level Five is extremely severe. Cassie, your father would be classified as a Level One." Booth shot him a questioning look. "I've seen your office and your apartment. You cling."

"I don't cling, okay?" Booth defended. "I collect things. It's a big difference."

Cassie rolled her eyes as she sipped her coffee, noticing a soldier in an army uniform watching them. "A Level Five disposophobic might also be an agoraphobic which would, uh, limit his relationships in the outside world." Lance went on.

"So, we'd be dealing with a very small pool of suspects then?" Cassie questioned, snapping back to the case. This time, it was Booth staring at the solider not far from them.

"Exactly." Lance nodded in agreement. He followed the two agents line of sight. "Why are you staring at that soldier?" he asked, looking between the two.

"It's not a soldier." Booth corrected. "It's a full-bird Colonel In the U.S. Rangers. And you know what? He's staring at me." he strode up to the Colonel, a displeasing look on his face.

"What do you suppose it's about?" Lance asked, looking at Cassie.

The blonde girl just shrugged. "Beats the hell outta me." she answered, sipping her coffee. She watched as her father spoke with the Colonel, both barely moving as they spoke. Seeley turned on his heels and walked away, throwing his coffee in the trash.

"Who was that daddy?" Cassie asked, observing her father's tense expression.

Booth ignored the questioned and patted Lance's shoulder. "Head back to the murder victim's apartment. See if you can pick out any psychological clues from the garbage."

"Sure." Lance agreed.

"Good." Booth took the case file and walked off.

Cassie turned and looked back at the solider, who walked away in the opposite direction. "Cassandra!" Booth called, standing by the SUV.

"Coming!" she called back, turning to Lance. "Call if you or Hodgins find anything."

"Got it." he leaned down and kissed her, cupping her cheek. Cassie kissed back, her left hand over Lance's, the sunlight reflecting off a shimmering ring on her finger.

* * *

Cassie smiled as she pulled back, walking off and joining her father, who opened the passenger side door for her. Seeley slid into the driver's seat and started the car. "I still think it's weird, you and Sweets together."

Cassie chuckled. "You're my father." she reminded. "It's kinda in the job description to dislike guys I date. It's only further intensified since Lance and I are engaged."

Seeley pulled away from the curb and drove with the traffic. "Yeah, but the one guy I don't dislike is the one you should marry."

Cassie reached for the silver jeweled ring on her left hand, twisting it. "You don't think Lance and I will make it to the alter?" she asked, looking over at her father.

"Yeah, honestly I do." Seeley admitted, glancing at Cassie before turning his attention back to traffic. "You can do better, Cassandra. I believe that."

Cassie looked out the window at the passing D.C scenery. "Yeah well, being an FBI Agent is kinda hard on the love-life." she reminded. "Maybe Lance is the best I'll get."

Seeley sighed. "I just don't want you to settle, that's all." he shook his head. "I know what happened a couple years ago hit ya hard, but you can't let that stop you from opening up again."

"You're just saying that because you don't believe in what Lance does." Cassie smirked, propping her elbow by the window and leaning on her knuckles. "Really dad, is anyone going to be good enough for your little girl?" she looked at him as he parked the SUV in the J. Edger Hoover building parking lot.

Seeley returned the smirk with his own, "There might be one guy out there." she answered, opening the driver side door. "It just isn't Sweets." Cassie rolled her eyes and followed her father inside, making their way to the interrogation room.

* * *

As they walked through the bull pen, Assistant Director Andrew Hacker intercepted them. "Can we help you?" Booth asked. "We were just about to talk to the building landlord."

"Go on ahead Booth." Andrew told him. "Cassandra, will you join me in my office?" he looked down at Cassie. "There's something I need to discuss with you."

Cassie looked between her father and boss, speechless. Seeley gently patted his daughter's shoulder "It's okay Cassie, go on." he encouraged. "I'll fill you in."

"Okay." she hugged her father and followed Andrew to his office, sitting opposite his desk. "So, what do you want to talk to me about?" Cassie asked, crossing her legs and leaning against the back of the chair.

"Have you read the letter that was on your desk this morning?" Andrew questioned, folding his hands in front of him.

"No sir." Cassie answered honestly. "I've been focused on this case."

"Right, the dead hoarder." Andrew pointed out. "That aside, the contents of that letter could mean something special."

Cassie raised an eyebrow, "Do you know something I don't, sir?" she asked.

Andrew shrugged. "Open the letter and find out." he pulled a file from his desk and laid it in front of him. "Go on, Cassandra."

Seeing no way out, Cassie pulled the still-sealed envelope from her purse and opened it, unfolding the letter inside. Her sparkling blue eyes scanned over the paragraphs, widening when as she read. She looked up at Andrew, "I'm being transferred?" she questioned, her expression shocked.

"It's purely voluntary." Andrew informed. "And it could be a mutual benefit."

"How so?" Cassie raised an eyebrow.

"Well, the lead agent in LA reviewed your file and thinks your skills could be valuable assets to his team." Andrew continued. "Conversely, you could learn a thing or two from them as well. Don't get me wrong Cassie, you're a fantastic agent, second only to your dad. But, think about it, you work on solving cases involving decomposed victims, whereas in Los Angeles, you basically catch criminals in real time, at a much quicker pace."

"Basically more action." Cassie simplified.

Andrew nodded and handed the file he previously pulled out to Cassie. "Here's a few articles about the lead agent, as well as clippings from a Bureau owned apartment complex." Cassie flipped through the apartment photos, her jaw falling slack. "For the year you're in LA, that's where you would be living." Andrew went on. "This was all their Assistant Director's idea. They really want you as part of their team. I have to agree that you would be a wonderful addition, and that says a lot."

Cassie bit her lip and slipped everything into the file, "So it would just be for one year?" she questioned. "Then I could come right back to DC and work with the team again?"

Andrew nodded. "Once the year has passed, and you still believe this is where you belong, then yes, you're more than welcome to come back and continue working with your father and the Jeffersonian." he agreed. "Likewise, if you enjoyed your time in LA, you're free to stay another year or two, maybe three if you desire. You could make the transfer permanent and live in California if that's what you want." he chuckled. "Just know, there's always a place for you here."

Cassie brushed her bangs from her face, sighing heavily. "Can I have some time to think about it?" her eyes pleaded.

Andrew nodded. "Of course." he wrote a number down on his notepad and handed the paper to Cassie. "Here's Agent Eppes' number. Call him with your decision."

Cassie took the paper and folded it, slipping it into the file and sliding it into her purse. She stood up and shook Andrew's hand. "Thank you sir." she put on a smile. "Have a good day."

"You too, Agent Booth." Andrew smiled and opened his office door in a gentlemanly manner, watching as father and daughter regrouped in the bull pen before heading for their lunch break.

* * *

Cassie sat by the window opposite her father as they ordered their traditional lunches at the Royal Diner: hamburgers and fries. "So, what did Hacker want to talk with you about?" Booth asked, popping a fry in his mouth.

Cassie sighed, swirling her straw around in her Dr. Pepper. She pulled out the file from her purse and handed it across the table to her dad. "The LA Office Violent Crimes Unit wants me as part of their team. The Assistant Director is even throwing in already paid housing."

Seeley looked through the pages, "Cassie, this is a great opportunity." he noted. "I've heard about this Agent Eppes, he's supposed to be one of the best on the west coast."

Cassie sipped her soda. "I don't know if I'm going to accept the transfer." she admitted. "I mean, I know it's only for a year, but, that's one year away from you and Parker, Dr. Brennan, Lance and everyone else." she sighed, biting her straw. "One year away from family."

Before Booth could say something, the Colonel from earlier appeared before them. "I would like another chance to speak to you." he stated, glancing at Cassie. "Alone, please."

Seeley held his hand up, "No, anything you have to say to me, can also be said in front of my daughter." he corrected.

The Colonel took the seat beside Cassie, his eyes meeting Seeley's. "As I said earlier, your country needs you." he reiterated their previous conversation. He pulled a letter from his pocket and handed it to Booth then left without another word.

Cassie watched as he left before turning back to her father. "The Army wants you to re-enlist?" she deducted, as she watched her father read the letter. "Why? You've done your service. At the expense of missing out on my childhood."

"I know Cassie." Seeley reminded. "I still can't help but wonder if I had been there back then, you wouldn't have made all those choices."

"Perhaps you're right." Cassie agreed. She bit down on a fry, "So, you going to do it?"

"Hi." Temperance greeted, sitting down next to Cassie.

"Hey, Bones." Seeley replied, putting on a smile. "What are you doing here?"

"You asked me here to compare notes on the murder." Brennan reminded. She gave Cassie a quick, one-armed hug. "Who was that soldier?"

"Uh, just, um- just an old army buddy of mine." Booth lied, covering the letter with his arm.

"You didn't look like buddies." Brennan pointed out. She turned to Cassie, "Were they?"

Cassie shrugged. "Never seen him before."

"All of a sudden you can tell stuff like that?" Booth questioned Temperance's earlier statement.

"Well, you've taught me to be more observant of human interaction." Brennan defended. "I can also tell that you're reluctant to be honest about your real relationship with him."

"Just tell her dad." Cassie interjected. "She'll find out one way or another." she sipped her soda, her elbow resting on her file.

Seeley handed Temperance the letter, and she read it over. "Secretary of Defense. They want you to go back into the Army? As a Sergeant Major." she read over the major highlights. "I thought you were a Master Sergeant."

"They're just trying to tempt him with a promotion." Cassie threw out.

"But I'm not goin'." Seeley added quickly.

Brennan continued to scan the letter. "This lists your commendations. You were really good at being a soldier. Why do they want you back?"

Booth shrugged his shoulders. "You know, they just think that my experience as an F.B.I. Agent and a sniper in the first Gulf War." he rattled off.

"You could train soldiers in techniques for tracking and apprehending insurgents." Brennan read off from the letter.

Seeley took it back and shoved it back into the envelope it came in. "Yeah. Well, I'm real happy tracking and catching murderers right here." he defended.

"They say you could save lives." Brennan added.

"Course they're gonna say it. It's the army." Booth reminded. "They say that 'cause that's what they want."

"You don't think you'd save lives?" Brennan asked.

"Yeah, but, I mean, anyone would in that position." Booth answered. "Look, I served my country. I have two kids here." he glanced at Cassie, who was reading her letter. "I got responsibilities. I'm not gonna go to Afghanistan, and you're not gonna go to the Makapoopoo Islands."

"Maluku." Cassie corrected. "And I guess then, I'm not going to Los Angeles."

"Right." Booth agreed.

"What?" Brennan questioned, looking at Cassie. "Who said anything about Los Angeles?"

Cassie slid her letter in front of Dr. Brennan. "The LA office wants me to transfer to their Violent Crimes Unit for one year. Saying my skills could prove to be valuable assets."

"They also say they'll provide you with housing while you're there." Brennan added, reading the letter. "The Agent who signed this appears to be very fascinated with your skills as an Agent, praising you for being this good as young as you are."

"Yeah, but it's on the opposite end of the country." Cassie reminded. "That's a long distance and long time to be away from family."

"Exactly." Booth agreed again. "We have our jobs here. We all make a great team and it's a bad idea to break up such a good rhythm." Temperance and Cassie both smiled softly at his statement.

* * *

As Seeley paid for his and his daughter's lunch, Cassie stood outside with Dr. Brennan. "Do you think I should take the transfer to LA?" Cassie asked, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. "I mean, I've only been there that one time, with you and my dad."

"Yes, when we were called to investigate the murder of the call girl who's remains were found at the airport." Brennan remembered. "You were a great help."

"I didn't do much, really." Cassie muttered. "I know it's a great opportunity and everything, but at the same time, I really like what I do here." she sighed. "I guess I'm a little scared to go. To be away from home, away from family."

"Cassie, you are a brilliant young woman." Temperance stated, facing the young girl before her. "It's been a pleasure to work with you, and I agree, it's a wonderful opportunity to work in Los Angeles." she braced her hands on Cassie's shoulders. "Logically, being away from home that long can help you grow in ways that will better you."

Cassie adjusted her purse strap and hugged her former boss, and maternal role model. "You do have a valid point." she chuckled, pulling away. "Dad thinks it's a good opportunity also. I think he wants me to go, just so I'll be away from Lance. Maybe break off the relationship entierly."

"You're out of his league anyway." Brennan noted. "Have you told Sweets about this yet?"

Cassie shook her head. "Not yet. I was planning to, I don't know when though." she shrugged. "I also have to tell Parker, and who knows how he'll react."

"I'm sure he'll understand, whatever you decide." Brennan assured. "Now, I should be getting back to the lab."

"Okay, thank you, Dr. Brennan." Cassie's lips curled into a gentle smile, which Brennan returned as she walked back to the Jeffersonian.

* * *

A few hours later, Cassie and Seeley were at the local baseball diamond where Little League games were held. Both were out of FBI Professional dress and were cheering on Parker, Seeley's son and Cassie's half-brother. The blonde jumped to her feet and cheered as her brother ran across home plate, clapping her hands frantically.

After the game, Parker ran into his sister's arms, hugging her tightly. "We won!" he laughed, grinning.

"I know. Congratulations." Cassie giggled, returning her brother's tight hug, a smile across her lips. "Now, let's go celebrate."

She led him to the SUV that Seeley was standing by. "High-five buddy!" Seeley chuckled as him and Parker slapped palms. He opened the back passenger door as Cassie slid into the front passenger seat. "Let's go grab something celebratory huh?"

"Yeah." Parker agreed, buckling his seatbelt.

Cassie tossed her purse behind her seat as she buckled up, smiling as she glanced between her father and brother.

"Where did you learn how to throw a fastball like that?" Seeley asked, glancing at Parker in the rearview mirror. "You were amazing."

"You taught me." Parker reminded, leaning back in the seat.

Cassie giggled, "Nah, I don't think dad's that good." she lightly jabbed her father's arm as they all chuckled.

Parker's grin faded as he looked at his father from the backseat. "Dad?" he questioned. "Are you going back to be a soldier?"

"Uh, why are you asking me that?" Booth asked, caught off guard.

"Mom said the army called our house looking for you." Parker answered.

"I'm not in the army , I'm out, okay?" Booth reminded. "I made a decision to stay with the F.B.I. to be with you and your sister, all the time." he smiled back at his two kids.

Parker looked down at the floorboards. "So it's our fault then?"

"Is what your fault buddy?" Cassie questioned, glancing at her little brother over her shoulder.

"It's mine and Cassie's fault people are gonna die." the younger boy clarified.

"No, that's not what I meant." Seeley corrected. "You and Cassie are not at fault."

"I want you to save lives." Parker added, flipping through the apartment pictures in Cassie's open file.

"Yeah, well, I do that here." Seeley reminded.

"No. Here, you catch people that kill other people." Parker stated. "With Cassie's help. Over there, you would make it so people wouldn't die. Isn't that better?"

"It was just a phone call, buddy." Cassie interjected. "That's all. It didn't mean anything."

"So, this doesn't mean anything either?" Parker asked, handing the file up front to his sister.

Cassie took the file and sighed. "You know you're not supposed to go through my stuff without permission, right?" she glanced back at her brother, raising an eyebrow.

"Are you moving to California?" Parker questioned again.

"The Assistant Director would like me to go to aid a team over there." Cassie answered, shifting in her seat to meet her brother's eyes. "It would only be for one year, but I could stay longer if I wanted."

"Do you want to?" Parker's dark eyes met Cassie's light ones. "I think you could save lives in California, just like dad could as a soldier."

Cassie bit her lip and glanced from her brother to her father, who's jaw was set shut as he drove. "What do you say we go get one of those huge, giant root beer floats that you love so much, huh buddy?" Seeley suggested. "To celebrate the game."

Parker nodded. "Sure."

Seeley smiled and took the next turn. Cassie leaned back in her seat, her brain weighing the pros and cons of her transferring to Los Angeles for a year.


	2. The Beginning in the End part2

**The Beginning in the End. Part Two.**

 **A/N: This chapter continues in the** _ **Bones**_ **continuity, concluding Cassie's status and beginning her transition from DC to LA. It sets the stage for the events in both shows which will be referenced later on. Enjoy! Reviews are appreciated.**

* * *

The next day, Seeley and Cassie sat in the interrogation room interviewing a colleague of the victim, Tim Murphy, named Elaine Akusta. The three were going over files that were found in the apartment the previous night.

"I can't believe this." Elaine sighed. "Tim and I worked together eight years. The exciting world of corporate accounting."

Cassie sat on the table, looking over a few of the files. She wore black ankle boots with a slight heel, charcoal grey slacks with a matching jacket over a blush pink blouse, her hair in a low ponytail. "When was the last time you saw Mr. Murphy?" she questioned, glancing at Elaine.

"Well, he left the firm a year ago." Elaine answered, meeting the young agent's eyes. "I haven't seen him since, but we've talked on the phone though."

"Do you know anything about these accounting records?" Seeley pried.

"Well, there's nothing special about them." Elaine assured, grabbing a few pages to show as examples. "It's simple receivables, cash receipts. It's office supplies mostly. It's the kind of thing that we take to the recycling bin each quarter."

"Which we found in Tim Murphy's apartment." Cassie finished, stacking the files back into one of the boxes. She adjusted her position where she was sitting criss-cross on the table, her arms resting on her pants.

Elaine nodded her head. "See, this is where it started." she elaborated. "He'd take home stuff from the office. It was garbage, really, but he acted like it was gold or something."

Cassie nodded slightly and picked up a page laying in front of her feet. "Do you recognize the signature on these documents?" she asked, sliding the page in front of Elaine.

"Well, yes." she replied. "It's mine."

Seeley walked around the table, going over another file. Elaine followed his movements, seeing the subtle looks the father-daughter duo shared. "Oh, wait. You're wondering if there's some kind of crooked accounting here?" she threw out accusingly. "Like I might have a reason to hurt Tim?"

"Oh, it kind of crossed my mind." Seeley answered, leaning against the table.

"You can have any forensic accountant look at these." Elaine told them. "They're worthless." Both Cassie and Seeley shared another look. "Tim had problems." she added.

"Yeah, the hoarding." Cassie reminded. "We know. We saw the apartment."

"Yes." Elaine confirmed. "He was Agoraphobic too." she added. "He wouldn't leave his apartment. That's why he lost his job. We tried an intervention a year ago, a bunch of us from work. But he wouldn't even let us in the apartment. I told him he was gonna smother in all that junk but to him it was treasure." she shook her head, regaining her composure. "About a month ago, he said a guy offered him $50,000 for something."

"You know what it was for?" Seeley questioned.

"I didn't take him seriously, Agent Booth." Elaine answered honestly. "Tim was a very sick man."

Cassie licked her lips and slid off the table. "Thank you Miss Akusta." she said formerly. "We appreciate the help." she opened the door and watched as Elaine left. Once she shut the door, Cassie turned to her father, sighing heavily. "So, what now dad?"

Booth got to his feet, "Let's see if Hodgins and Sweets made any progress at the apartment." he suggested. The two left the interrogation room and made their way to Tim Murphy's apartment.

* * *

"Someone offered him $50,000?" Hodgins asked, still not totally convinced anything in the apartment was worth that much. "For what?"

"She didn't say." Booth answered. "Just said a guy offered him 50 grand for somethin'."

"A disposophobic has a delusional regard for the value of the things he hoards." Lance informed, stepping out from behind a crowded shelf.

"Yeah. That's what Dr. Brennan said. But she used anthropology-speak, so it sounded more sciencey." Hodgins chuckled.

Cassie examined the door-frame, "So the marks on the door here, you're saying it's from termites?" she asked, looking at Hodgins.

The Entomologist nodded in confirmation. "There's termite damage all through this area."

Seeley shook his head in disagreement. "I don't think so." he rebuked. "See this wood there?" he pointed to the section of wood around the lock and doorknob. "That is splintered."

"Meaning that the door was probably pried open." Hodgins deducted.

Seeley nodded. "So, a robbery." he simplified.

"That's a motive for murder." Cassie shrugged her shoulders and tapped the heel of her boot on the hallway carpet.

"Hoarder has an actual treasure. Someone wants it. He won't sell. He's robbed, murdered." Lance listed, nodding slightly. "Yeah, it fits."

"I don't think it's possible to tell if anything got stolen from this place." Cassie scoffed, leaning against the door-frame from the hallway.

"So Daisy and Dr. Brennan are going to Indonesia for that Maluku Island dig." Lance spoke up, changing the subject.

"I figured Dr. Brennan would be going." Cassie noted, shrugging her shoulder. "Daisy, now didn't expect that." she shook her head, her blonde ponytail draping over her shoulder.

Seeley scoffed. "No, Bones is not going anywhere." he rebuked.

"If it's any consolation," Hodgins cut in, leaning against a pile of boxes. "Angela's dad got cheated out of his car in a card game with some bikers, and he wants me to steal it back."

"How's that any consolation?" Cassie quirked her eyebrow.

"Ah, travails d'amour, mes amis." Hodgins quoted in french. "The things we do for love."

"Okay, you two guys stay here, see if this guy's got anything in here worth fifty grand." Seeley told the two boys. "Cassie, c'mon."

The younger agent bit her lip, "Hey Lance." she met eyes with her fiancee, who walked up to her. "Can we meet at the diner later?"

"Sure, why?" Lance asked, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Assistant Director Hacker gave me a voluntary assignment, but I don't want to make any decisions until we talk." Cassie answered honestly. She leaned up slightly and pecked his lips. She pulled back and met his eyes, "We do need to talk."

Lance nodded "Of course, I'll see you tonight." he kissed her again and watched as she walked down the hall.

Hodgins shook his head, "When a woman says 'we need to talk', chances are the relationship is ending." And on that note, he went back to work, leaving Lance to ponder the subject of his engagement to Cassandra.

* * *

"Hey dad." Cassie spoke up, leaning against the open passenger door of the SUV.

"Yeah?" Seeley questioned. "What is it Cassie?"

"I'm leaning towards taking that transfer to LA." Cassie admitted, her shoulders dropping. "You're right that it's a great opportunity for me and the experience could help me in the long run." she slid into the vehicle and shut the door.

Seeley started up the SUV, "What about your relationship with Sweets?" he asked as he pulled away from the apartment. "I thought despite what I said, you believed he was good enough for you? You did agree to marry the guy."

Cassie leaned back in the seat, crossing her legs as she twisted the engagement ring on her finger. "Well, we have been a bit out of sync lately." she admitted, looking at the toes of her boots. "And I'm starting to think you're right. No matter how we feel, or what we think we feel," she looked over at her father, "Lance and I probably won't make it to the alter." she looked out through the windshield. "No matter how much I would like that to happen."

Seeley shrugged his shoulders and reached across to pat his daughter's arm. "I know sweetheart." he sympathized. "Everything happens for a reason, maybe some good will come from the time you'll spend in LA."

"Meaning I might find Mr. Right?" Cassie translated, raising an eyebrow as she rubbed her temple.

"You never know." Seeley shrugged, trying to hide a smile. Cassie rolled her eyes and jabbed his arm, giggling.

* * *

The SUV pulled into the Jeffersonian parking lot and the two agents stepped out. Dr. Brennan was sitting on a bench under a shady tree, she smiled when she saw Cassie and Seeley. "Why don't you two talk and I'll see what Angela has. Maybe there's been a breakthrough."

"Good idea." Seeley kissed her forehead and joined Temperance as Cassie jogged up the stairs and entered the Jeffersonian.

"Hey Cassie!" Daisy greeted as the young agent joined her on the Forensics Platform. "I'm sure you've heard that Dr. Brennan and I are going on the Maluku Dig."

Cassie nodded, "Yeah, Lance told us." she cut off the rambling intern. "Is Angela in her office? I want to know if there's been a breakthrough in the case."

"Yes, she's with Dr. Saroyan." Daisy informed. "So, what will you be doing while Dr. Brennan and I are in Maluku?"

Cassie sighed, the realization hitting her. "I'm going to Los Angeles." she answered, turning to face the intern. "A one-year transfer to the Violent Crimes Unit in the LA Field Office."

"Sounds exciting." Daisy grinned. "Will Lance be accompanying you?"

Cassie shook her head. "I don't think so."

"You're too good for him." Daisy interjected, going back to working on the bones. "It's good to just end it now. Just because you have a lot in common, doesn't necessarily mean you're meant to be, despite being engaged and all."

Cassie blinked and walked off the platform, leaving Daisy to ramble to herself. She walked in to see Cam and Angela going over a newly-put together file. "You girls got something?"

"I think we might." Cam answered, handing the case file to Cassie. "Here's our findings so far."

"Cool, dad and I will file a report with Caroline and see what she says." Cassie smiled and held the file to her chest. "So, are you guys up to go somewhere while Dr. Brennan is away?"

"Not me, someone has to stay and run this place." Cam shook her head.

"And I'm sure Hodgins and I will be sticking around." Angela added. "What about you? Will you be taking Booth's place while he's away?"

"Nope." Cassie answered, her lips curling into a smile. She dug out her transfer letter and handed it to Cam. "I'll be in Los Angeles."

"Violent Crimes." Angela repeated, her eyes widening. "Damn Cassie, that sounds kind of dangerous."

"The FBI in and of itself is dangerous." Cassie reminded. "I'll be fine. I mean, if they didn't think I could handle it, they never would've asked for me."

"This Agent Eppes seems to be very interested in your record. By the looks of this letter, he really wants you as part of his team." Cam deducted, handing the letter to Cassie.

"Yeah, Dr. Brennan said the same thing when she read it." Cassie replied, putting the letter back in her purse. "It's a good opportunity and sounds like something I can adapt to real quickly." she smiled. "Anyway, thanks for the file. Keep up the great work." she winked as she left the Medico-Legal Lab.

* * *

Cassie sat next to Caroline Julian, the Federal Prosecutor, as she looked over the report both agent's prepared. Her expression read less than enthusiastic. "So here's what you got so far?" Caroline cleared her throat as Seeley leaned against the table. "A crazy hoarder got knocked down, buried alive under his own hoardings by a robber, who stole something that maybe killed bugs then the hoarder died a little while later then fell through the ceiling of the apartment downstairs."

Seeley softly cleared his throat. "It sounds better in the report."

"Which raises the question-" Caroline looked between the father-daughter agents. "You usually add a little spice to your reports when you know your case is weak." she looked in Cassie's direction, "To go along with his spice is your knowledge of the legal system. You always add in all those big fancy lawyer terms. Where's your head at child?"

"There was no question in there." Cassie noted, motioning to the report.

"It was implied." Caroline huffed dryly. "Connect the dots."

Seeley sighed and dropped the letter from the Secretary of Defense in front of Caroline, who opened the paper and read it over. She pursed her lips and looked up at Booth. "Aren't you a little old to go out fighting wars?" she declared, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm not going to be fighting." Seeley corrected. "I'm just going to be training soldiers to investigate, pursue and detain."

"I guess that answers my next question as to whether or not you intend to go." Caroline sighed. She then turned to Cassie, holding up the letter, "This is your old man' excuse. What's yours child?"

Cassie met her eyes and rolled her own, pulling out her own letter from the LA Field Office. Caroline snatched it from her hands and scanned the page, scoffing. "So, the City of Angels is lookin' to snatch you up from us huh?"

"I'm thinking about going." Cassie admitted, her eyes away from Caroline's. "I'm supposed to talk to Lance tonight and tell him, along with me ending the engagement, and thus the relationship, between us." she sighed, looking at the ring on her finger.

Caroline slapped Cassie in the back of the head with the letter she held, earning a surprised yelp from the younger girl. "Child, you better not be sayin that this poor excuse for a report is because of boy troubles."

"No ma'am." Cassie chimed, rubbing the back of her head.

Caroline narrowed her eyes and slid the letter back to Cassie. "Now, the next question." she folded her arms in front of her on the table, looking to Seeley. "What about your partner?"

"Dr. Brennan's going to Indonesia with her intern, Daisy Wick." Cassie answered, flinching as Caroline's displeased stare moved back to her.

"You know what? Maybe it's time to find another, you know, F.B.I. Guy and a Forensic Anthropologist." Seeley suggested, bracing his hands on one of the chairs opposite the two girls.

"Yes." Caroline agreed, sarcastically. "On account of you're both so replaceable." she sighed. "You got to act like a big boy on this one."

"You don't want me to go?" Seeley questioned.

"You go, you stay. That's up to you." Caroline answered, standing up and glancing between the two. "But before you go, you clear this case. Not just dress up nothing in a nice report." she grabbed her briefcase and walked out of the conference room.

Cassie sighed, "She does have a point." she noted, shaking her head. She slid her chair back and smoothed out her blouse. "I'm meeting Lance at the diner, I'll call ya later." Cassie gave her dad a smile and went out to the parking lot, sliding into her red Volkswagen, leaning back in the seat.

* * *

The Royal Diner was the favorite place of the team. Lance sat at the bar, a cup of coffee in front of him. Cassie stood by the window, gathering up the nerve to go through with her plan. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and exhaled, taking the empty bar stool by her fiancee. "Hey." she greeted casually, a smile on her face. "Coffee, vanilla creamer and two sugars." she ordered from the waitress.

"So, you said we need to talk." Lance reminded, not making eye contact.

Cassie bit her lip and looked down at the bar. "Yeah, we do." she confirmed, giving a small smile to the waitress who set her coffee down in front of her. She pulled the file from her purse and slid it towards Lance. "About this." Cassie took a sip of her coffee, licking her lips.

Lance looked through the file, the name Los Angeles jumping out instantly. Seeing the apartment images only further confirmed the growing suspicion. "You're transferring to Los Angeles." he concluded.

"Just for a year." Cassie added. "After that, I'm free to come back." she took another sip of her coffee.

"Violent Crimes Unit." Lance muttered, reading over the transfer letter.

"Basically everything we do here, just following fresher bodies." Cassie cleared her throat, looking down at the pale brown liquid, stirring it with her spoon. "I may even get a chance or two to put that FBI Sniper training to use."

"Sounds like you've made up your mind." Lance swallowed the lump in his throat.

Cassie nodded slightly, "I just need to call Agent Eppes and tell him I've accepted." she bit her lip and looked at Lance, twisting the ring on her finger. "A year is a long time. A long time to wait for someone."

"Cassie, you know how I feel about you." Lance reminded, placing his hand over hers. "You're like my dream girl. Brains and beauty all rolled into one angelic package."

"Yeah, my halo is held up by tiny horns." Cassie joked, chuckling.

"I love you." Lance declared.

Cassie's shoulders sank as she pulled her hand away, slowly twisting the ring off her finger. "I know. But, I think I'm in love with that idea and just that." she looked down at her drink. "What happened with Zack-" she shuddered, shaking her head. "it hurts, even now. You were more or less a distraction from that pain."

Lance sighed. "Guess this was too good to be true." he admitted, folding his hands on the bar.

"You deserve better." Cassie told him, taking his hand. She placed the engagement ring in his palm and closed his hand around it. "Your dream girl is out there Lance, she's just not me." Cassie took one last gulp of her coffee and paid her bill, sliding off the barstool and slipping the file back into her purse. She placed her hand on Lance's cheek, turning his face to hers as she kissed him for the last time. "Goodbye Lance."

Lance watched as Cassie exited the diner, pulling out her cellphone and reading a number off a folded piece of paper, dialing it. His lips curled into a smile, "Goodbye Cassandra." he muttered.

* * *

Cassie unlocked her car and laid her purse in the passenger seat just as the other line picked up, "This is Eppes."

"Yes, Agent Eppes, this is Cassandra Booth." Cassie introduced. "I'm just calling to let you know that I've accepted the offer to join your team."

"Wonderful." Eppes replied. "When can we expect you?"

"Well, I'm still working a case here in DC, but it should be wrapping up soon." Cassie answered, starting her car. "Give me a few days and I'll give you a call before I fly out."

"Sounds like a plan." Eppes confirmed. "Can't wait to meet you and get you settled."

"Same here." Cassie agreed. "Goodnight Agent Eppes."

"Goodnight." the other line dropped out and Cassie set her cell in the cupholder as she drove back to the apartment she lived in with her dad.

* * *

The following day, Cassie was packing her suitcase. Seeley knocked on the door before entering. "Getting all packed?" stating the obvious question.

Cassie smiled at her father, "Yeah, I might have to check two suitcases." she chuckled. "All my business clothes seem to be filling just the one." she patted the solid black suitcase laying on her bed. "Any new leads on the case?" Cassie asked as she folded another pair of slacks.

"Uh yeah." Seeley scratched his ear. "Bones says the marks on the skull were caused by a fan." he leaned against the doorframe. "Hodgins and Sweets are gathering all the fans from the apartment."

Cassie nodded and zipped up the one suitcase, setting it by the edge of her bed. She grabbed the second one, a red and black checkered print, and flopped it open, grabbing more casual clothes from her closet. "So, I guess we find that fan, we'll find the murderer?" she questioned, folding a couple of concert t-shirts.

"Yeah. According to Bones, the fan caused the blood splatter we found and Murphy fell and was crushed by something, eventually he starved to death." Seeley informed.

"Case closed then huh." Cassie muttered, adding her mini-skirts and leggings to the suitcase. "We should be able to leave by tomorrow."

Seeley walked into his daughter's room, picking up an old brown bear in an army uniform. "I remember buying this for you, after I was discharged." he smiled. "You loved it."

Cassie nodded and continued packing the rest of her clothes. "I was thinking about taking Ranger with me, along with a few other sentimental belongings." she admitted, taking the army bear from her father and setting it on her pillows. "I'll just stick 'em in my carry-on."

"I called Rebecca, and surprisingly, she agreed to let Parker come with us." Seeley threw out.

That made Cassie stop and face her dad. "What?" she questioned, jaw falling slack.

"I don't have to be at the base until next week." Seeley elaborated. "I was thinking Parker and I could fly with you to Los Angeles and help you get settled in."

"And Rebecca is okay with this?" Cassie raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah." Seeley answered. "Parker could fly back with me to DC and she can pick him up at the airport."

Cassie smiled and hugged her dad, "I'd like that." she agreed, looking up at him. "As soon as I'm finished, I can arrange for the tickets."

"Already done." Seeley pulled out three, first-class, tickets. "We have an hour and half layover in Vegas."

Cassie giggled and finished packing up her closet, along with some workout clothes and pajamas from her dresser. "When does the flight leave?" she asked, zipping up her second suitcase.

"Two days from now." Seeley answered, setting the tickets on the empty dresser. "Now come on, we have a case to close."

Cassie nodded and grabbed her gun holster, attatching it to her belt. She grabbed her badge and purse, following her dad out the door.

* * *

The Jeffersonian had matched a fingerprint on one of the fans to Elaine Akusta. Hodgins and Sweets had also found photographs of Elaine and Tim, which looked like they were very close, closer than just simple collegues. That was enough to put the pieces together and bring Elaine in for questioning again.

"We found your fingerprints on the fan." Temperance informed, sitting across from Elaine in the interrogation room. Next to Dr. Brennan was Cassie, who slid a few photographs in front of Elaine.

After staring at each picture for a few minutes, Elaine took a shuddering breath. "I was in love with Tim." she admitted, swallowing the lump in her throat.

Cassie could see the sincere emotion in her eyes. She folded her arms in front of her. "When was the last time you guys were together?" she asked in a soft tone.

"Over a year." Elaine answered, sniffling. "I thought if I could just get him out of that apartment, maybe if the sun hit his face, he would change and we could have a real life." tears fell down her cheeks. "So I pulled him to the window, and I ripped down the curtain." Elaine pursed her lips together, trying to regain her composure. "And he lost it."

"You two fought." Seeley inferred, leaning off the wall by the viewing mirror and stood by his daughter.

"He attacked me." Elaine corrected. "So I pushed the fan at him and I ran away. But I didn't think I killed him." she shuddered, squeezing her hands together. "I loved him, but there was nothing I could do."

Dr. Brennan, Seeley, and Cassandra all shared a subtle glance, knowing that their final case together was officially closed. On the other side of the viewing mirror stood Lance and Caroline.

"Well, that's that then." Caroline sighed, walking towards the door. "They're free to go."

"You don't think this success might make them change their minds?" Lance questioned, his hands in his jacket pockets.

Caroline turned and faced the young psychologist. "You know what? You're a nice kid." she complimented in her own way. "But today is a good day for you to grow the hell up."

Lance turned and watched as Cassie conversed with Elaine, more than likely reciting the Miranda Rights and explaining the repercussions of the murder. He took note of the softness of her eyes and her body language was far from antagonistic. With a small smile, Cassie stood up and walked out of the interrogation room.

Leaning against her desk, Cassie took a deep breath and exhaled, letting it sink in this was her last case with her father and Dr. Brennan, at least for the next year. She grabbed her car keys and tucked some strands of her hair behind her ear.

"Case closed." Lance concluded, standing behind her. Cassie turned and faced him. "Where you running off to?"

"I'm picking up Parker from his mom's." she answered, draping her black blazer over her arm. "He's coming with my dad and I tomorrow when we fly to LA. They're gonna stay with me for a few days while I get settled in." Cassie's lips curled into a smile. "See ya." She spun on her heels and walked away.

* * *

The next day, everyone gathered in the airport, saying goodbyes as they prepared to go their separate ways. Daisy was dressed in stereotypical safari gear as she stood by her cart of luggage. Dr. Brennan was dressed more professional but still comfortable.

"I've really enjoyed working for you, Dr. Brennan." Cam stated, holding in her emotions.

"In fact, Dr. Saroyan, I worked for you." Brennan corrected.

"We both know better." Cam chuckled as the two colleagues hugged.

"If anyone in LA gives you trouble, just pistol whip them." Hodgins told Cassie as he embraced her.

Cassie let out a laugh as she returned Hodgins' embrace. "Don't worry, I can take care of myself." she reminded, smiling. "But I appreciate the concern."

"Okay, me next." Angela cut in, giving Cassie a tight hug. "Be safe sweetie."

"I will, Ange." Cassie replied, closing her eyes. "Have a wonderful time in Paris. E-mail me pictures okay."

Angela pulled back and brushed Cassie's bangs to the side. "You got it. Every week."

Cam was the next to hug Cassie, embracing her softly, almost maternally. "I'll miss you Cassandra." she admitted, tearing up.

Cassie rubbed Cam's back as she held back her own tears. "I'll miss you too, Cam." she replied, pulling away. "It's only for a year. By the time you really start to miss me, I'll be back." she smiled and wiped the moisture from her eyes.

Cassie then turned to Lance, her shoulders dropping. She wrapped her arms around his neck, rubbing his shoulders. "Thank you, Lance, for everything." she sighed, pulling back, meeting his eyes. "You'll always have a place in my heart, you know that right?"

Lance nodded, putting on a smile. "Yes, I do." he cupped Cassie's cheek, caressing it softly. "I hope you find what you need in Los Angeles. Just know that, if you ever need a friend to talk to, you can always call me."

Cassie smiled, "Romance is the last thing on my mind." she admitted. "If I do meet someone, then great, but that's not my priority. I'm going there for a job, nothing more." she took Lance's hand from her cheek and interlocked their fingers. "One last kiss, for the road?" she chuckled lightly.

Lance returned the smile as he kissed her, both feeling the closure they need to move on. They squeezed each other's hands tightly, their noses brushing past one another's as they pulled away, gazes locking. "Goodbye Cassie."

"Bye Lance." Cassie leaned up and pecked his cheek, slipping her hand from his, adjusting the strap of her backpack on her shoulder, slowly stepping away. Her last goodbye hug was from Dr. Brennan, and that's when the tears started to fall. "I'm going to miss you the most, Dr. Brennan." Cassie admitted, sniffling as she laid her chin on Temperance's shoulder.

"And I will miss you very much Cassie." Brennan replied, squeezing the young girl and rubbing her back. "Never have I come across someone more like me." she pulled away, meeting Cassie's eyes. "Please be careful, while you're in Los Angeles."

Cassie nodded, "I will. And, don't worry, I'll avoid all cosmetic surgery." she chuckled, clearing her throat. "I won't succumb to the twisted sense of beauty of the golden coast."

"Good." Dr. Brennan stated, caressing Cassie's cheek. "You're beautiful, just the way you are. Let no one tell you otherwise." she pulled out a sack from her carry-on bag. "Here, my publisher gave me a copy of my new book that will be out soon. I want you to have the first copy."

Cassie took the book, smiling. "Thank you, so much." she took the book from Dr. Brennan. "Is this the one you were writing when my dad was in the hospital?"

"Yes." Temperance confirmed. "Read the dedication."

Cassie flipped to the dedication page, "'Dedicated to the inspiration for Clara Lister, an extraordinary girl who's grown close to me in all the years I've known her. Someone beautiful and smart, and real role model. A constant support, and a surrogate daughter.'" her eyes filled with moisture as she shut the book and hugged Temperance. "I love you Dr. Brennan." she shuddered, laying her head on Temperance's shoulder.

"I love you too, Cassie." Temperance replied, rubbing Cassie's shoulders. "I'll see you in one year."

Cassie pulled back, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. "By then I'll have already read this book like three times." she giggled, slipping the book in her backpack.

Pre-boarding calls came over the intercom systems, which signaled the parting of the Jeffersonian Team. With looks of silent goodbyes, everyone walked off in different directions; Temperance and Daisy towards their terminal, the Booth family to theirs, and Angela and Hodgins to another.


	3. Judgement Call

**Judgement Call.**

* * *

Dressed in black slacks with a matching blazer over a white blouse and bow wedges, Cassandra Lane Booth was ready for her first day as part of the Violent Crimes Unit of the Los Angels field office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Her blonde hair was pulled into a high ponytail and her bangs were curled just above her bright blue eyes. Around her neck was a silver cross on a gold chain, a symbol of her Catholic faith.

In the kitchen, Seeley Booth was busy preparing breakfast for his two children, one of which was still asleep in the guest bedroom. Cassie walked out of the master bedroom, radiating confidence. "Morning dad." she greeted, slipping around the bar and pecking his cheek. She grabbed a newly purchased thermos and filled it with fresh coffee, pouring in two packets of sugar and a couple spoonfuls of French Vanilla coffee creamer.

"Good morning Cassie." Seeley replied, placing a freshly made omelette on a plate. He handed it to his daughter, "That's for you, just the way you like it."

The younger agent smiled and set the plate on the bar, taking a bite. "You always make the best omelettes." she complimented, opening a drawer near her, digging out her badge and FBI issued G43 Single Stack 9mm Pistol, sliding it into her holster which she placed on her hip.

"Well, breakfast is the most important meal of the day." Seeley reminded, preparing another omelette for Parker. "You ready for your first case?"

Cassie nodded, "Yeah." she answered, taking another bite. "I'm really looking forward to meeting the rest of the team. Get a feel of who I'll be working with." she smiled. "Of course, no one can compare to you and the Squints." Cassie chuckled as she thought of her friends back in DC. After taking a few more bites of her omelette, Cassie set it aside and gathered up her things. "I should get going, don't wanna be late." she slung her purse strap on her shoulder, grabbing the keys to the black sedan issued to her by the bureau. "Give Parker my love and I'll call you guys when I catch a break."

Seeley wrapped his oldest child in his arms and kissed the top of her head, embracing her tightly. "Be safe out there, baby girl." he told her, not caring to hide the worry in his voice.

"I will dad." Cassie promised, pulling back. "After all, you taught me everything I know." her lips curled into a smile as she slipped out of her father's embrace. "I'll call when I can." she opened the front door, waving, "Love you dad."

"Love you too, Cassandra." Seeley echoed as the front door latched shut.

As she drove, Cassie's radio played 'Drift Away' by Dobie Gray. With her sunglasses on, Cassie tapped the steering wheel to the beat and started singing along, a smile on her face. The federal building came into view and Cassie pulled the sedan into an open parking lot. Shutting off her car, she climbed out, adjusting her purse strap and looking herself over, smoothing out her blouse and tightening her ponytail. "Okay Cassie." she breathed. "You got this. Just like work back home, just fresher bodies." Cassandra took a deep breath and exhaled, locking the car and walking up to the front doors, keeping her confidence high, she strode inside.

* * *

The elevator doors opened and Cassie's eyes widened at the sight of the bullpen, which was much bigger than what she was used to. An agent who she's only seen in pictures caught her eye, sitting at his desk.

"Excuse me, Agent Eppes." a female's voice caught Don's attention and he looked up, meeting the blue eyes of his new agent.

"Agent Booth." Don greeted, getting to his feet and extending his hand. "Welcome to Los Angeles."

Cassie shook his hand. "Thank you." she replied with a smile. "And, Agent Booth is my father." she chuckled. "Call me Cassie."

"Okay then, Cassie." Don nodded. "Let me give you a tour." he led her down an isle, pointing just ahead of them. "That's the break area, there's always a fresh pot of coffee on plus a fridge if you bring lunch or something." he informed, motioning to another larger room next to the break room. "That's the War Room, where we do briefings and such. Over there is the interrogation room." he pointed to a room to the far right. "Self explanatory there."

"Right." Cassie nodded.

She followed Don to a clear desk with an already booted up computer. "And here's your desk." he told her. "Get settled in." Don patted her shoulder. "Welcome aboard."

"Thanks." Cassie smiled at sat at her desk, setting her purse by the phone and pulling out a couple of framed photographs. One was of the crew at the Jeffersonian, her old team, and the other was of her, Parker, and Seeley after Cassie graduated Harvard. She looked around the bullpen, reality sinking in that this was her life for the next year.

* * *

An hour or so later, Don and his team were sent out into the field after a murder had taken place at the resident of a local judge. Two of his agents were already at the scene when Don and Cassie arrived on site.

"Nice place." Cassie muttered, looking over the grounds of the crime scene, pushing her sunglasses up the bridge of her nose.

Agents David Sinclair and Colby Granger met Don and Cassie as they walked up the sidewalk. "Agent Booth, meet Agents Sinclair and Granger." Don introduced.

"So this is the transfer." Agent Sinclair noted, giving Cassie one look over. "David Sinclair." he introduced, outstretching his hand.

Cassie grasped it firmly, "Cassie Booth." she introduced herself, nodding her head.

"Colby." Agent Granger extended his hand, giving the new girl a charming smile.

Cassie smiled back and shook his hand just as firmly as before, "Hey, nice to meet you." she said, sweetly "So, who's he?" she asked, motioning to the older man sitting on a chair on the porch, talking with a uniformed officer.

"That's the Federal District Judge." David answered as the four walked past him. "The victim's husband, Judge Franklin Trelane, Central Division."

"When did he get here?" Don asked, putting on a pair of latex gloves.

"The marshals drove him over about half an hour ago." Colby informed. "He was right in the middle of a trial."

"What's the trial about?" Cassie inquired, also applying latex gloves.

"Asian gang-bangers; death penalty case." David answered her.

Cassie clicked her tongue, nodding her head slightly. "We've already started running down the defendant's known associates." Colby added.

"That's a large suspect pool then." Cassie muttered as she ducked into the garage, moving her sunglasses to the top of her head.

"Her car was in the shop." David informed. "She borrowed his."

Cassie leaned in, examining the blood spatter in the front seats, narrowing her eyes. Colby stood beside her, "You know, you take the oath, they give us a gun, we go into public service with our eyes open, but nobody tells us our families are fair game." he sighed, shaking his head.

"They're not." Don rebuked, taking note how intently Cassie was examining the car. She straightened up and put her finger to her chin, tapping it as she cocked her head slightly to the side. "Well Cassie, what can you tell us?"

The new agent looked over her shoulder, seeing he was waiting for an answer. She nodded and turned back to the vehicle, "Well, the spray pattern suggests that, um, the shooter waited for her to pull in." she explained, pointing to the blood stains on the driver's seat. "He, or she, waited for the garage door to close, and opened fire." she took a step back to get a better view. "And from the shattering patterns on the glass, and the blood splatter, I'd say a shotgun was used." she turned to face the three male agents.

"What, you some kind of forensics expert?" David questioned.

Cassie shrugged her shoulders, "Minor Associates in Forensic Science from a small community collage in DC." she answered. "Also, I worked with the best Forensic Anthropologist in the world for about six years. If the body was still in the same position it was in when found, I could've probably told you what gauge of shotgun to boot."

"Pretty impressive." Colby praised.

"Cassie also has a law degree from Harvard." Don added. "Now you can see why I requested her transfer."

Cassie couldn't help but smile at the high praise as she looked around the garage. "You know, if the killer was in fact waiting around here, he or she could've rubbed up against any number of this stuff."

"So let's check it." Don ordered, looking in the forensics team's direction.

"If the suspect's breaking into the garage, the victim comes in and surprises him." Colby suggested.

Cassie looked down, something cylindrical and bronze in color catching her eyes. She turned to one of the CSI techs, "Hey can I have a pair of tweezers and an evidence bag?" she asked.

The tech nodded. "Sure."

"Thank you." Cassie got down on her knees, taking the items she requested from the tech.

"What you find there?" Don asked her.

"It appears to be a-" Cassie informed, using the tweezers to grab the bronze colored item she found under the car and placed in the evidence bag. "shell-casing." she got to her feet, holding it up so the others could see. "Twleve gauge by the looks, I'd say. We should run ballistics to be sure though."

"There goes the burgler theory." David noted.

"You got four shots, point blank." Don pointed out.

"That's no surprise." Cassie stated, her hands on her hips. "That's premeditation."

"So murder was the object." Colby concluded.

"Yeah, which begs the question: who was the target?" Cassie pondered. "The judge or his wife?"

"She learns fast." David whispered to Don.

"Cassie will fit in just fine." Don whispered back.

* * *

"How long have you been with the bureau?" Colby asked Cassie as the two stood outside. "You look a little young, no offense."

"None taken." Cassie replied. "I've only been an agent four about two years, but I've been working homicides since I was a sophomore in high school." a smile crossed her lips. "That's when I first started working for the Jeffersonian Institution. More specifically, Dr. Brennan, the Forensic Anthropologist."

"They let a high school student work federal homicides?" Colby questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, I was the forensic photographer. Meaning I was the one who photographed the crime scenes and put the case files together." Cassie cracked a small smile. "My dad may have pulled some strings. He's the actually the reason I wanted to be a federal agent, to follow in his footsteps." she looked down at her feet.

"So, where does the law degree fit into that?" Colby pressed.

"I'm really good at arguing a point." Cassie joked, chuckling. "I don't know really, it's just felt like something I could be good at." she shrugged her shoulders. "My summers off from Harvard, I interned with the Federal Prosecutor who worked closely with my dad. After I graduated, I took the federal training course at the DC office issued and passed with flying colors, just like my dad."

Don walked out of the garage and motioned to Cassie to follow him. She followed orders, sliding into the passenger seat of the SUV Don drove to the crime scene.

* * *

Stacks of files were spread out across all the tables in the War Room. Agent Megan Reeves and Don's brother, Charlie, were already inside going over potential suspects and motives.

"Megan. Charlie." Don greeted, removing his sunglasses. "Meet Cassandra Booth, our new team member."

Cassie smiled, sliding her sunglasses on top of her head. "Nice to meet you." she greeted casually.

"Welcome to the team Cassandra." Megan welcomed, shaking hands with the new girl and giving her a warm smile.

"Cassie." the younger female returned the smile. She turned to Charlie, shaking his hand as well.

"Nice to meet you Cassie." Charlie said kindly. "Welcome."

"Charlie here consults with us on many of our cases." Don informed. "He's a math professor over at CalSci."

"Oh yeah, I read that somewhere in an article Assistant Director Hacker gave to me." Cassie remembered, looking between the two brothers. "I look forward to seeing for myself firsthand." she slipped her hands into her back pockets. "So, this is the suspect pool, I take it?" she assumed, taking one of the open files and looked over it.

"Yes." Megan confirmed. "We searched the criminal histories and the psych profiles that might have a tilt towards retaliation and the inclination to act on it."

"Now, are you assuming that Alison Trelane's killer is someone that the husband put in jail?" Charlie asked.

"Yeah." Megan answered with a nod.

"We're thinking the judge was the intended target, not the wife." Don added.

"Right, no, yeah, I-I understand, but, uh, your suspects aren't limited only to people who were convicted by the judge, right?" Charlie questioned.

Cassie sat the file she read down as she listened to her new colleagues. "That's right." Megan agreed. "There's also family members, friends, co-conspirators. The possibilities are exponential."

"Exponential." Charlie repeated, scratching his cheek. "That would mean that the growth rate is proportionate to its size, so, yeah, the mathematically correct term would be 'more'."

"Well, call it whatever you want." Cassie muttered, looking over the stacks of files. "Going over all these files is going to take a lot of time."

The young professor shook his head. "Not necessarily Cassie." he corrected. "You can create a Bayesian filter."

The young agent looked up at him, her eyebrow raised. "Excuse me, a Bay-what filter?" she questioned.

Charlie grinned, "Do you ever get any junk e-mail or spam?" he asked, looking between all three agents, who all nodded. "Well, that's why they create spam filters; to filter out junk e-mail from regular e-mail." he informed. "And spam filters are Bayesian filters, and what they do is they calculate the probabilities that an e-mail is spam given that it has certain words like, uh, 'refinance', 'stocks', 'Viagra'."

"And you can do something similar to narrow down the list of suspects?" Megan asked.

Charlie nodded. "I can create a filter that uses your criteria to reduce the list of suspects to people most likely to kill a judge's wife."

* * *

Agents Sinclair, Reeves, Booth, and Granger, carried thick stacks of files into the bullpen, setting them down on a group of desks. "Judge Franklin Trelane's been on the bench eighteen years and twelve years before that as a Federal Prosecutor." Cassie informed, reading off the information on Trelane she printed off.

"I figured I'd start generating threat assessments." Megan volunteered.

"Threat assessments?" Colby repeated, sounding unenthusiastic.

"Behavioral analyses based on documentation, court transcripts, death threats, pre-sentencing psych evals." Megan elaborated, brushing her hair from her face.

"Right. In other words, profiling." Colby chuckled.

"You make it sound like a bad word." Cassie noted, her ponytail draped over her shoulder as she looked at the fellow new agent.

Colby shrugged. "No, just never thought 'coulda, woulda, shoulda' figured very well into a homicide investigation." he defended. David scoffed and shook his head. "What?" Colby questioned. "What's she gonna tell us; the guy we're looking for had a bad childhood?

"You know, not all sociopaths have bad childhoods." Cassie informed, smoothing out her blouse. "As a matter of fact, some law enforcement personnel exhibit the same characteristics." she smiled in Megan's direction.

"Newbie speaks the truth." Megan agreed.

"What, you a shrink too?" Colby looked at Cassie.

The younger female shook her head. "No." she chirped, giggling. "My ex-fiance was a psychologist employed by the bureau."

"Duc Lu Phan." David read off, showing a prison mugshot to the other agents. "Defendant facing the death penalty in front of Trelane." David elaborated.

"Sort of fits the profile of a guy who might want to whack his judge, huh?" Colby noted. Megan nodded in agreement.

"Hey Cassie!" Don called from across the bullpen. "I'm heading out to interview the judge, why don't you come with me?"

"Sure boss." Cassie winked, sliding past Colby and heading to her desk, grabbing her blazer jacket.

"Ex-fiance?" Colby repeated, leaning against the glass panel of another desk. "What happened there?"

"Oh, wouldn't you like to know." Cassie teased, patting his cheek once before spinning on her heels and meeting Don by the elevator.

"New girl's good." David said to Megan.

"I like her." Megan smiled, "She's very cute, witty, and smart. A breath of fresh air."

* * *

Don and Cassie sat opposite Judge Trelane in his chambers, watching as he overlooked a framed picture of him and his wife.

"We're sorry for the timing." Don apologized.

"Don't be, Agents." Trelane rebuked, clearing his throat. "We all have our work to get to."

Cassie cleared her throat, crossing her legs. "Judge Trelane, can you think of anyone who might have a motive for killing your wife?" she questioned, hating to ask it but knowing it had to be asked.

"Someone who objected to her work for the American Heart Association or a fellow member of her horticulture club?" Trelane wondered aloud, albeit sarcastically. "This murder was an attack on me, on the bench. All three of us know that."

Don looked to Cassie, leaning back in the chair, giving her a subtle nod to continue the questioning. She shifted in her seat, brushing her ponytail off her shoulder. "And the case you're trying now?"

"Duc Lu Phan." Trelane interjected. "He's a leader of a local street gang."

"He's facing you for the death penalty." Don reminded.

"I realize that." Trelane replied. "But if I talk to you any more about him, I'll have to walk away from the case."

Cassie nodded, clearing her throat. "All right, well, we're going to try to run it down another way then." she noted, glancing at Don.

"You should be prepared for that." Don instructed.

"I'm sure his lawyer will make a motion to have me step aside, but I'd rather make that decision on my own." Trelane sighed. "Violence and tragedy; they walk through my courtroom five days a week, and I assign them values." he went on. "Your grief is worth five years, hers is worth twenty. One of those decisions killed Alison." he looked down at the framed photo from earlier, before looking back at the two agents. "What is my grief worth?"

Cassie and Don exchanged a glance before getting to their feet. "I'm sorry for your loss." Cassie consoled as she followed her lead agent out of the judge's chambers.

* * *

"I know the questions are hard, Cassie." Don sympathized. "But they have to be asked in order to catch the person responsible."

Cassie nodded, "I know." she replied. "It just-it's never easy when it's a loved one of a victim." she stopped and faced Don. "I've been doing this since I was sixteen years old, and it's still just as hard." she sighed, pursing her lips together.

Don patted her shoulder reassuringly, "For your first day, you're doing very well." he complimented. "You're going to do just fine with the team, don't worry."

Her lips curled into a smile, "Thanks boss."

The two agents walked through the courthouse, heading for the elevators. The sound of heels clanking on the linoleum made them slow down, just as a female prosecutor with blonde hair in an updo bun joined them, her eyes focused on Don. "It's my favorite G-man." she chuckled, walking up to the older senior agent.

"Nadine." Don greeted, his lips curling into a smile as he looked her over. Cassie took note and cleared her throat, snapping Don back to the matters at hand. "Uh, Nadine Hodges, this is Cassandra Booth, the new transfer."

"Hi, nice to meet you." Cassie smiled, waving.

"You too." Nadine replied. "Where did you transfer from?"

"DC." Cassie answered. "It's only for a year though."

"Oh, I see." Nadine nodded her head.

Don softly cleared his throat and glanced in the direction of the elevators before meeting Cassie's eyes. Getting the hint, Cassie chuckled and took a step back, "I'll go call the elevator." she suggested, turning on her heels and walking away, casually glancing over her shoulder, watching her lead agent flirt.

Cassie's cell phone rang inside her pocket, which she picked up on the fourth ring. "Booth." she spoke, official like.

"How's your first day going, sweetie?" Seeley asked on the other line.

"You know, typical homicide." Cassie answered. "The wife of a federal judge was murdered at their home and I just got through interviewing said judge." she shook her head. "It's never easy."

"I know what you mean." Seeley sympathized. "Listen Parker and I were thinking about stopping by and having a late lunch with you if that's alright."

Cassie exhaled, "Sure, sounds good." she smiled, the elevator to her right dinging. "Okay dad, gotta go. I'll see you in a bit."

"Okay, love you Cassie." Seeley replied.

"Love you too," Cassie echoed, ending the call and slipping her phone back in her pocket. When she looked up, she was face to face with Charlie. "Oh, Charlie hi. What are you doing here?"

"Actually, I was looking for my brother." Charlie answered.

"Uh, he's over there." she pointed down the hall, where Don and Nadine were still conversing as people walked past them. "Flirting with a prosecutor."

"Great, thanks Cassie." Charlie patted her shoulder as he walked by, making his way towards his brother.

Cassie shook her head, and leaned against the wall, watching the three talk. She stood straight when Don and Charlie backtracked towards the elevators. "I, uh I could've just taken the bus back to CalSci and then went home." Charlie stuttered as the three entered the elevator.

"Yeah, well, you're about fifteen seconds too late with that thought." Don scoffed, hitting the first floor button.

"Sorry." Charlie apologized. Cassie held her hand in front of her mouth to suppress a giggle.

* * *

In the Break Room; Seeley, Parker, and Cassie all sat around a table eating takeout while Cassie was going over case files related to her recent case. "What exactly are you doing sis?" Parker asked, looking in Cassie's direction.

Cassie flipped through another page of the file she was reading. "You know I can't discuss ongoing cases with you buddy." she reminded, taking a piece of sushi from her plate and popping it into her mouth using her chopsticks. "All you need to know is I'm covering my bases."

"Just like any other case." Seeley noted, taking a bite of his lo-mein.

The door to the break room opened and Colby walked in. "Hey Booth." he greeted, smiling in her direction.

"'Sup Granger." Cassie replied, not making eye contact. Instead, she took another bite of her sushi.

Colby fixed a small cup of coffee, his eyes still on the younger blonde agent. "Want some coffee?" he gestured.

Cassie held up a Styrofoam cup, "I'm good. Got my caffeine fix right here." she took a sip of her Dr. Pepper. "Thanks though."

Shaking his head, but putting on a smile, Colby walked over to the table and took the last open seat, which was to Cassie's left. He moved her outstretched legs and sat down, putting the heels of her wedges on his knee, making Cassie look up at him from over the file, "Can I help you?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Wanna give a fellow agent a hint at what your looking up?" Colby offered, taking a case file from the stack between him and Cassie.

Cassie looked at her brother, "Put your headphones on Parker." she told him, giving a serious stare. Parker nodded and put on his headphones, going back to reading his comic book. Cassie looked back in Colby's direction. "LAPD dispatch reports centered around Trelane's neighborhood." she answered. "Covering my bases."

"Smart." Colby praised.

Cassie nodded and took another sip of her soda. Seeley cleared his throat from across the table, his eyes meeting his daughter's. Cassie sighed, "Colby, meet my father, Special Agent Seeley Booth." she introduced. She pointed over her shoulder, "And that's Parker, my little brother."

Parker took his headphones off and waved at Colby. Seeley extended his hand, shaking Colby's and giving a nod. "Are you my sister's partner?" Parker asked.

Cassie looked at her brother, "Well, for the case we're working right now, no." Colby answered. "But, that doesn't mean we won't be partnered up at some point."

"We're both the newbies." Cassie added, setting the file she was reading down. "So we're both partnered up with senior agents." she nudged his arm and smiled. "Hey buddy, how's this sound; when I get home, we pop some popcorn and watch the whole X-Men trilogy?"

Parker grinned and nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah." he agreed.

"Cool." Cassie held her fist out and Parker bumped it. "We can curl up in my bed while dad sleeps on the couch." Seeley chuckled and shook his head. Cassie picked up another file and scanned the pages, something catching her eye. She swung her legs down to the floor and stood up, "Hey Colby, check this out." she pointed to a section of the file.

"There's something." Colby looked up at Cassie and the two were soon rushing into the bull pen near the desks where Don and David were talking.

* * *

"Guys." Colby called as the two new agents stopped.

"Hey, I was just coming to get you." David said to Colby. "Don wants us to check out some gang intel."

"Yeah, well, you might not have to." Cassie informed. "I ran Trelane's neighborhood addresses through the LAPD dispatch database, see if there are any prowler reports or anything like that." she went on, handing the file to Don. "Between May 2001 and June 2003, LAPD responded to five domestic disturbance calls at Trelane's residence."

"Apparently, they had some knock-down, drag-outs." Colby added.

"No criminal reports were filed." Cassie continued.

"Yeah, well, guy's a federal judge." Don reminded. "No surprise there."

Cassie nodded in agreement. "Yeah, and on two occasions, Trelane was instructed to vacate the premises." she went on. "We've been assuming the shooter was after the judge and got the wife by mistake."

Don nodded, seeing where Cassie was going with her information. "Yeah. We might be looking at this all wrong." he looked to the three agents before him. "You know, it's been a long day, why don't you three take off early. Get some rest and we'll pick this up tomorrow."

"You sure?" David questioned.

"Yeah." Don nodded. "Go home, we'll pick up on this lead tomorrow morning."

Cassie had no objections to that plan, she simply nodded and went back to the break area, finishing her late lunch/early dinner with her father and brother before leading them out of the bureau office.

* * *

 **The Next Day...**

Cassie rode with Megan over to CalSci to check on Charlie's work narrowing down suspects. Cassie let out a whistle, "This is nice." she noted, looking around.

"Yeah, according to Don, Charlie's office is this way." Megan led the younger agent down a hallway, knocking on an open office door.

"Morning agents." Charlie greeted, giving both women a smile.

"How's that spam filter thing of yours going?" Cassie asked, looking around the slightly cluttered office.

Charlie scratched the back of his head. "It's coming along. I still need to factor in a few more variable sets."

The young blonde nodded her head, "So, how is that whole filter going to work?" she turned and faced the professor, her hands in her back pockets.

"So glad you asked." a grin spread across Charlie's face. "So Bayes' theorem states that uncertainty, degrees of belief, can be measured as probabilities." he elaborated.

Megan noticed the large stack of files, all scattered over a couple of desks. "Charlie, do you realize I spent two days putting these files in order?" she reminded, going through one of the stacks.

Charlie nodded, "Yeah, uh newest to oldest." he replied. "Why did you do that?" he questioned.

"Because a criminal is much more likely to act on his or her rage right around the time of conviction." Megan answered. "You know,while the focus is still sharp?"

"Couldn't the opposite hold true?" Charlie pondered. "A grudge festering over time, new developments aggravating it?"

"It would depend upon the personality and the situation." Megan informed.

"So, if time functions differently on different people, then a chronological approach would be no more effective than choosing a folder at random." Charlie stated.

Cassie shrugged her shoulders. "I guess that makes sense, but still, you've gotta start somewhere."

"No. You have to start everywhere." Charlie corrected. He took note of the confused expressions both agents were sporting and sighed. "Okay think of these files as report cards, okay?" he compared. "But we're not looking for the newest students, or the oldest."

"We're looking for the one with the highest grade point average." Megan cut in, sitting on one of the clearer desks. Cassie took a spot beside her, listening intently.

"With the grades being for quantifiable behavior, such as the nature of the crime, the severity of the sentence, the potential for gain." Charlie compared.

Cassie nodded in understanding. "Yeah, but this isn't just a handful of A's and B's, Charlie." she reminded. "These are really raw human motivations, like rage and revenge."

"Origami." Charlie stated. Megan rolled her eyes and Cassie shrugged, raising an eyebrow in confusion. "In origami, there are six basic folds: mountain, valley, diagonal, fold and unfold; reverse, and turnover." he added. "Each fold is a simple, finite, imminently-quantifiable action. But the infinite number of combinations creates the possibility for an infinite number of forms." he started folding a piece of paper as he spoke. "Decision theory contends that we should use the same basic criteria with every action we take. Risk, reward, consequence, and certainty."

"Human behavior is not that rational." Megan told him, shaking her head.

Charlie cracked a small smile. "Well, that's why my system is not meant to be a replacement for your skills." he noted. "It's simply a tool to help you use them much more efficiently." he finished the origami flower and handed it to Cassie.

She took it with a smile, "That's good." she complimented. "Very impressive."

* * *

The two female agents spent the day at CalSci, watching the consultants do their work. Cassie sat on a clean desk, one leg over the other as she watched Amita work. "This is defiantly a new approach to solving crimes." Cassie noted, shaking her head. "I'm more used to holographic imaging and such."

Amita looked over her shoulder, meeting Cassie's eyes. "I've read up on the Jeffersonian's lab, it must've been amazing to work with all that high-end equipment." she smiled.

"Yeah, it was kinda cool at first." Cassie admitted. "After a while, it just seemed routine. Although, Angela would be busy designing new programs to improve our processes and such. But, your approach is equally impressive."

Amita returned the agents smile, going back to her work. "Well, it's nice to be doing a little Combinatorics again."

"Combina-what?" Cassie questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Combinatorics." Amita repeated. "It's a branch of computer science."

"Amita's not satisfied with just one measly PhD." Charlie cut in. "She's now moved on to Astrophysics."

"Well a girl's got to have skills." Megan noted.

"And yet, somehow, we still get stuck with the typing." Amita joked, which also roused a laugh from Megan and Cassie.

"Well, you're familiar with the program." Charlie reminded. "I'm not familiar with the program."

An older gentleman entered the office carrying a tray of food, taking a standing space between Charlie and Megan. "Oh, well, this is where all the fun is, huh?" he interjected.

"Professor Fleinhardt." Charlie patted the older man's shoulder.

"Hi, Larry." Amita waved, while still working on her program.

"Larry Fleinhardt, this is Megan Reeves and Cassie Booth." Charlie introduced his colleague to the two agents. "They're working with Don."

Larry nodded to both girls, smiling at Megan. "Cassie, what's that short for?" he inquired, meeting Cassie's eyes.

"Cassandra." she answered, smiling. "But, I prefer to be called Cassie."

"Cassandra, beautiful name." Larry complimented. "Meaning 'prophetess'."

Cassie nodded, "Yeah, not sure my mother knew that when she named me." she chuckled, looking down at the full tray of food. "You realize all your food is white, right professor?"

"Mm, yes, I prefer white food." Larry informed, setting the tray down and slowly eating.

"Why is that?" Megan asked, her interest peeked.

"Supersymmetry." replied the older professor. "It's a theory that describes the nature of connectivity in complex multidimensional space."

Megan's smile only grew. "You know, symmetry is also a term we use in behavioral science to explain obsessive behavior." she informed.

"Oh, is it now?" Larry seemed a bit impressed with the information.

Megan nodded. "I have a two-year-old nephew who won't eat anything but pasta with butter." she chuckled. "We're a little worried he might be a budding scientist."

"Larry has a tendency to live out his theories." Charlie informed, leaning against a backwards facing chair. "Amita, are you ready to show us a 3-D scatterplot distribution of all the relevant case?"

"Sure." Amita punched in a few more equations and the model appeared on her laptop screen.

Cassie leaned in closer, "It looks like a random buckshot of points." she inferred, placing her hands on her hips.

"Except for a small number of cases that stand out." Charlie replied.

Amita plugged in a few more lines of equations and over half of the points suddenly dropped. "That's a lot less files than I originally gave you." Megan noted.

"Yeah, and we're not even done yet." Charlie informed, writing another set of equations on a notepad and handing it to Amita. "Amita do you think you can filter the rest through something like this?"

"It looks kind of like decision theory." she observed.

"It's reverse decision theory, actually." Charlie corrected. "See, in decision theory, options are evaluated by risk and reward."

"Corporations use it to weigh business plans, what products to develop, what companies to do business with." Larry added, eating his food at Charlie's desk.

"Like a hunter searching for food." Charlie continued. "He's constantly evaluating his terrain, his available prey, and rival predators weighing them against his own appetite, his own strength, his needs, until he makes what he considers an optimal decision."

"However, with reverse decision theory you take the optimal goal, and you reverse the process." Larry went on.

"In other words, you start with the final decision?" Megan guessed, leaning against the desk next to Cassie.

"The murder of Alison Trelane, in this case." Cassie muttered.

"That's right." Charlie praised. "And then, determine which predator is most likely, by inclination, by opportunity to have made that decision." As Charlie explained this, the remaing plot points fell from the graph Amita had pulled up, leaving only two remaing cases.

"You go Professor Eppes." Cassie praised, digging through the stacks of files, looking for the two pinpointed cases.

* * *

"Charlie's work distilled our suspects down to two." Megan informed, as she, Cassie, Don, and Charlie sat in the War Room.

Cassie turned on a video of one of the suspects. "Number one is Orson Hardee ." she read off from the case file she held. "He shot Detective Josh Kalen in a drug deal in 1994. Trelane was the judge. The jury came back in less than an hour with a verdict. Since his conviction, he's become a jailhouse attorney." she went on, flipping the page. "He's filed sixteen appeals, all of them denied. Now he's gunning for a new trial in front of Trelane, and Trelane's not buying it."

"So, what, kill Trelane, he gets a chance at another judge?" Don questioned.

Cassie shrugged. "Perhaps." she clicked the screen and a second mugshot came up.

"Number two is Lance Dolan, currently wanted on a bench warrant for assault." Megan went on. "LAPD believes he's still in the area."

Don looked over the second file. "Well, I don't see Trelane's name here."

"'Cause Lance Dolan has never been to court with Judge Trelane." Cassie informed.

"However what's significant is Lance Dolan was the only name that entered the data pool through a Crimestopper tip." Charlie clarified.

"Oh, so you're saying an informant says this guy killed Alison Trelane?" Don questioned.

"Yes, and we're running down that angle, but his psych profiles are in line with this kind of act." Megan answered.

"But the only thing that connects them is the tip?" Don looked between his agents and brother.

"There are only two cases that spiked extremely high values in my analysis: Orson Hardee and Lance Dolan." Charlie reiterated.

"Well, I mean, I don't see a motive." the lead agent sighed.

Charlie leaned against one of the metal tables, crossing his heels. "Yeah, but Don, what if you had no motive, but you had, like, a partial fingerprint?"

"Follow the evidence." Don answered quickly.

"So what's the difference between my math and a partial fingerprint?" Charlie questioned.

"He's got a valid point." Cassie agreed. "At this point, the Asian gang is a dead end."

"All right, well, we'll see what David and Colby come up with about the tip, but, meanwhile, we should be looking at this guy." Don ordered, pointing to Orson Hardee's mugshot. "Hard."

* * *

The following day, Cassie accompanied Don to interview the widow of Josh Kalen. They both stood behind the couch as she went over the incident that killed her husband. "It was a drug deal that went bad." she informed, looking at a picture of her husband in uniform, holding back her tears. "Only when this animal, Hardee, realized Josh was a cop, he just shot him. Just shot Josh in cold blood." she sniffled and motioned for Don and Cassie to take a seat.

"Well, I'm very sorry." Don consoled. "Have you heard from anyone connected to Hardee?" he asked, meeting the widow's eyes. "Phone calls, threatening letters, anything like that?"

"You think he's coming after me now?" she asked, somewhat shocked.

"He's not going anywhere." Cassie assured. "But, you've been very vocal about keeping him in prison, and we just would like to take precautions." she crossed her legs and folded her hands on top of her knee.

"Right. I understand." the widow took a shuddering breath. "It never stops. Even with my husband's pension, I had to work two jobs to keep this house." she looked down at her feet. "My daughter ran away the day she turned seventeen. My son would be in jail if some of Josh's friends on the force hadn't stepped in. People need to see all of Hardee's crime, not just Josh's murder, but what it cost his family."

Cassie licked her lips, "And you've been at all the court dates, is that correct?" she asked.

"Every hearing, every appeal." Mrs. Kalen confirmed. "But, each time, it gets a little harder. People don't want to remember, they want to forget. Forget about what this man did to Josh. But I won't let them."

Don and Cassie left the house in silence. Cassie spent the majority of the drive back to the bureau staring out at the window, resting her cheek on her knuckles.

* * *

Later on that night, the team sat around one area of the bullpen, going over what information they had collected thus far.

"I just got back from the LAPD warrant squad, turns out Lance Dolan's got a girlfriend." Colby informed the team, handing the file to Don. "Stacy Manning. Arrests for burglary, stolen property, twice as his codefendant."

"Yeah? Where's she at?" Don asked.

"Venice." Colby answered. "We have her under surveillance, in case Dolan shows."

"The thing that's bugging me is we're basing all of this on the word of a career informant." Cassie muttered, sitting on the desk with her legs criss-crossed.

"Well ,no, it's not just based on the tip." Charlie interjected. "It's also based on my analysis."

"Charlie, at some point, I'm gonna have to explain why I've got four agents chasing down Lance Dolan." Don pointed out. "And you know, as far as I can tell, from this equation-"

"Expression, Don." Charlie corrected.

"Expression, equation you know, I don't understand why Dolan gets such a high number." Don continued.

"Well, there's the tip itself, of course." Megan inferred. "And there's also his record, and the psych profile."

"Sure, uh, but, um, there's also, um..." Charlie stuttered. "Sometimes math finds something that we can't explain. And why Dolan is showing up as part of this case, I can't fully explain." he scratched the back of his head. "It's, uh...it's pi.

"Pi?" Colby repeated.

Cassie glanced over her shoulder, looking up at him. "It's the ratio of circumference to the diameter of a circle." she informed, smiling.

"Yeah, I know what pi is." Colby replied, lightly jabbing her shoulder.

"Okay, but did you know that if you randomly drop needles onto a sheet of lined paper, the probabilty that a needle will cross a line relates directly to pi?" Charlie questioned. "It's called Buffon's needle. Pi appears in quantum mechanics, relativity theory,and number theory. But do you know why pi would show up in all of these seemingly unrelated places?"

"Actually, I don't have a clue." Megan replied. Colby and Cassie also shook their heads.

"Neither do I." Charlie admitted. "No one does yet, but, although we can't fully explain pi, it keeps working. It keeps turning up."

Cassie propped her elbows on her knees and rested her chin on her knuckles. "So, you're saying that pi is like something that connects Dolan to Trelane but we just can't figure it out yet?" she deducted, studying the whiteboard behind Charlie.

David joined the group holding up a file. "Lance Dolan's bench warrant." he informed. "Guess who he's wanted for stabbing last year?"

Cassie took the file from David and flipped it open, revealing a familiar looking mugshot. "Hector Machado." she announced.

"Well, that could explain why Hector's so willing to snitch on Dolan." Colby inferred.

"Or set him up." Megan added.

Cassie looked between the mugshot and the whiteboard filled with expressions. A smirk crossed her lips as she jumped off the desk and pinned the mugshot on a free space. "All righty." she took the black marker and drew a single symbol and an equal sign pointing to Hector's mugshot. "Pi." she capped the marker, grinning triumphantly.

* * *

"When you gave up Lance Dolan for Alison Trelane's murder, you left out a little detail." Cassie informed as she paced around Hector as he sat in Interrogation.

"Yeah, like the fact that he assaulted you last year." Colby reminded sitting across from their suspect.

Hector rubbed his chin, looking between the two agents. "Lance and I did some business together." he told them. "There was a falling out."

"A falling out." Cassie repeated, sitting on the edge of the table, crossing her legs. "The dude stabbed you, Hector."

"How long did you think it was gonna take us to figure that out?" Colby questioned, leaning back in the chair.

"I wasn't really sure." Hector admitted. "Look, there's no love lost between us, but one thing ain't got nothing to do with the other. And you can check the court records. Lance got busted for stabbing me based on other witness accounts, not mine. I never said word one against him."

"Until now." Colby pointed out.

"Well, now, he's worth $25,000." Hector grinned, taking a sip of his coffee.

* * *

"Hector could just be trying to get revenge against the guy who stabbed him." Colby relayed to Don as the two, plus Cassie, walked back to the bullpen from the interrogation room.

"Or he could be telling the truth." Cassie added, shrugging her shoulders.

Don nodded. "Hey, Megan,where are we on Orson Hardee?" he asked as said agent crossed his path. Charlie was right behind her.

"I was just going over this with Charlie." Megan opened Hardee's file. "Hardee is a sociopath who brags about killing a cop, and then won't admit it. He files legal documents to prove his legal acumen."

"So, if he put together the hit on Trelane from prison?" Cassie threw out, hypothetically.

"His intent would be to let us know." Megan confirmed.

"Which brings us to Dolan." Cassie sighed, slipping her hands in her back pockets. "If we believe Hector."

"As far as I can see, Dolan's got no motive." Don stated.

"Even though Dolan has no apparent motivation, my analysis still says he's a suspect." Charlie reminded.

"Still no sign of Dolan at the girlfriend's house, either." David reported.

"Look, we got to find this guy already." Don sighed. He looked in Colby and Cassie's direction. "Did you see if Hector could help us on that?"

"We'll find out." Cassie agreed.

"Let's do it." David nodded and led the two rookie agents to work on a plan which Hector would agree to help.

* * *

In a small computer lab, the techs were busy setting up a tap on Stacy Manning's phone. "You know this guy, so this should be easy." Colby assured.

"When she answers, ask for him." Cassie instructed Hector. "Nothing fancy."

Hector dialed the number and waited for Stacy to pick up. "Yeah?"

"Is this Stacy?" Hector asked calmly.

"Who is this?" Stacy asked.

"Hector. I'm a friend of Lance's." he answered. "I need to talk to him."

"He's not here." Stacy informed.

"Tell him I heard the Feds are looking for him." Hector stated.

"I don't know when I'll see him." Stacy lied on the other line.

"Whatever. Just tell him I called." Hector scoffed and hung up. He looked at the two rookie agents, winking at Cassie. "Think I did pretty good?"

A few seconds later the tap picked up a second call from Stacy's phone. Colby and Cassie readjusted the headphones, listening in. A male's voice picked up on the other line. "What?"

"The Feds are coming." Stacy warned. "I think that guy Hector gave you up."

"Now,why she assumes-" Hector whispered harshly only to be silenced by Cassie.

"Leave right now, come pick me up." Lance ordered. Stacy agreed and hung up.

"That's it." David confirmed, giving a nod of approval to the two rookie agents.

* * *

In one interrogation room, David and Megan were grilling Lance Dolan on the murder of Alison Trelane, while in the second room, Colby and Cassie were again questioning Hector Muchado. Don was in the viewing room, watching his team at work.

"Who?" Lance questioned.

"Alison Trelane." David repeated.

"We have DNA." Megan informed. "We have your shotgun."

Lance scoffed, "And what kind of deal do you have?"

"Look, we don't need a deal, Lance." David rebuked, raising his voice.

"You killed a judge's wife." Megan reiterated, calmly. "Can you think of a defense attorney in town who's gonna want to wear that bull's-eye on his back?"

Dolan licked his lips, not making eye contact with either agent. "I didn't know who she was."

"Mrs. Trelane?" David interjected.

"I figured it was just some guy who wanted to get rid of his wife." Dolan defended.

"You're saying Judge Trelane's involved?" Megan questioned.

Dolan just shook his head. "I should have known better." he berated. "It was a straight contract: $5,000 up front and another $5,000 after." he sighed. "I just thought it was some guy's wife."

* * *

In the viewing room, Don's cell went off. He answered it on the second ring. "Charlie, I can't talk, all right? We just picked up Lance Dolan."

"Good, because I've reevaluated my analysis, and what's significant is, the algorithm wasn't indicating Dolan or Hardee." Charlie informed. "My math was connecting the two cases. That's why Dolan spiked in the first place. Don, these results clearly indicate that there's a common denominator." he added. "Something connects Dolan to Hardee."

Don turned up the volume on the speakers from the second interrogation room. "Yeah, we know, Charlie. I'm looking at him right now." he told his brother. "I'm gonna call you back."

* * *

Cassie paced around the table, now standing opposite Colby, her arms folded across her chest. "We've got Lance Dolan talking next door." she informed, her lips curling into a small smile.

"That's right." Colby confirmed, sitting on the corner of the metal table. "And the first name that came out of his mouth was yours."

"Yeah, well, we do have a history." Hector reminded.

"Yeah, you do. Alison Trelane." Colby noted. "Contract killing that you set up." he got to his feet and leaned into the table, staring down Hector. "I'm gonna give you five seconds to give me a name. Otherwise, I'm gonna go grab Lance Dolan, and put him in here, and let the two of you guys figure it out yourselves." Hector just shook his head and scoffed under his breath. "You think I'm selling wolf tickets, man?"

Cassie raised an eyebrow in confusion, mouthing 'wolf tickets' and shrugging her shoulders. Hector shook his head and leaned back in the chair. "You got nothing on me." he said. "I made an introduction. That's all."

"You made an introduction to who, Hector?" Cassie inquired, taking Colby's spot as she leaned in closer.

"I don't owe anything to Lance Dolan." Hector stated. "I did to Josh Kalen."

The name rung familiar in Cassie's ears. "Josh Kalen." she repeated. "You mean Detective Josh Kalen?" she straightened up, tucking some hair behind her ear. "The cop that Orson Hardee murdered?"

"Kalen took care of me for a lot of years." Hector informed. "Treated me like a real person."

"So, you kill Trelane's wife after he sent his murderer to jail?" Colby deduced.

"I told you, I introduced them." Hector defended. "Anything that happened after, that's got nothing to do with me." he looked between the two agents. "Conspiracy law. You could look that up."

"Who the hell are you talking about, Hector?" Colby demanded.

Cassie's eyes widened and she took a step back, running her hand over her hair. "Oh my God." she muttered, licking her lips.

Colby noticed Cassie's mood change and refocused his attention on her. "You got something partner?" he asked.

Cassie nodded and turned their bodies away from Hector. She leaned in close and whispered in Colby's ear, revealing the 'who' in question Hector was referring to.

* * *

Don and Cassie, along with two other FBI agents pulled up to the Kalen house, just as Mrs. Kalen pulled into the driveway.

"Agent Eppes? Agent Booth?" she questioned, slightly confused.

"Mrs. Kalen, you're gonna have to come with us." Don stated. "Bring your hands behind your back, thumbs up, please."

"I don't suppose you could let me put these away first." Mrs. Kalen shrugged off.

"I'm sorry, no." Cassie answered, cuffing Mrs. Kalen's wrists behind her back.

Mrs. Kalen dropped her act, shaking her head. "Ten years of trials and appeals. Parole hearings. My stomach in knots." she admitted. "Always wondering if this was the time Orson Hardee would go free."

"Judge Trelane put the guy in prison, ma'am." Don reminded as him and Cassie walked her to the second car.

"Trelane kept the man who slaughtered my husband alive." Mrs. Kalen corrected. "The jury recommended the death penalty. Did you know that? Only Trelane overruled them. With that one decision, he destroyed my family."

"Hardee killed your husband." Cassie pointed out, opening the backdoor to the sedan.

"But it was the judge's decision that forced us to relive it." Kalen added. "With every appeal, my children had to relive their father's murder. And now Hardee wants a new trial? I just I couldn't put them through that again."

"Why the judge's wife?" Don asked.

"So Trelane would know what it's like to lose someone." Kalen answered honestly. "So maybe he'd think twice about the next killer he goes easy on."

Don and Cassie exchanged a look, before the younger female agent helped Kalen into the backseat. "Watch your head." she warned. Cassie shut the door and watched as the sedan took off.

* * *

"So, you think you're going to like it here?" Megan asked Cassie as the two chatted in the break room.

Cassie shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe it's not as bad as I thought." she admitted. "But, it will take some getting used to."

The two women walked to their respective desks in the bullpen. Cassie loaded up her belongings and shut down her computuer. "Nice job Booth." David complemented, patting the young girl's shoulder.

"Thanks." Cassie replied. "See ya tomorrow." she smiled and walked towards the elevator, hitting the down arrow.

"Mind if I tag along?" Colby asked, standing beside Cassie.

"No." she replied casually as the doors opened. "Hey, what exactly are 'wolf tickets'? I have never heard that term used before, not even in law school."

Colby sighed. "I think David said it's something like a bad bluff." he shrugged. "And you were pretty smooth in those interrogations."

"Well, during mock trials, I was referred to as pit bull." Cassie admitted, smirking. "Because I just attacked those witnesses, and I never lost a case." the two agents walked out of the building and towards the parking lot. "Then when I became an agent, everyone referred to my dad as a pit bull, for similar reasons, so I was downgraded to the pit bull pup." she giggled.

"I can see why." Colby agreed, walking Cassie to her sedan. "So, see ya tomorrow?"

Cassie nodded, tossing her purse in the backseat, leaning against the open driver's side door. "Yeah, although I will be a little late." she sighed, a cool night wind blowing her through her hair.

Colby shoved his hands into his suit pockets. "Can I ask why?"

"I have to take my dad and brother to the airport." Cassie answered. "Then from there, my dad's going to be flying to Afghanistan. To train soldiers to capture insurgents."

Colby nodded, "So, you're an army brat then."

Cassie shook her head, "Just a brat who's father's an Army Ranger." she corrected, giggling. She slid into her car and started the engine, buckling her seatbelt.

"Night Cassie." Colby shut the driver's door and waved goodbye before heading to his own vehicle.


End file.
